


A Crime Family Is Stronger Than Blood

by boston_sized_city



Category: The Penumbra Podcast
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Ben lives and joins juno and rita on the carte blanche, Canon-Typical Violence, F/F, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, It's a Ben Lives AU, M/M, Multi, Other, The Aurinko Crime Family Is Gay, probably wildly inaccurate to the source material, so does mick
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-12
Updated: 2020-09-17
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:08:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,196
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25867960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/boston_sized_city/pseuds/boston_sized_city
Summary: In which the Aurinko Crime Family gets a little bigger, and a little more dramatic.Juno is still hopelessly pining, Benten is no help, and more than one secret is at risk aboard the Carte Blanche.
Relationships: Benzaiten Steel & Juno Steel, Buddy Aurinko & Juno Steel, Buddy Aurinko/Vespa Ilkay, Mick Mercury/Benzaiten Steel, Peter Nureyev & Benzaiten Steel, Peter Nureyev/Juno Steel, Rita & Jet Sikuliaq, Rita & Juno Steel
Comments: 11
Kudos: 85





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic for this fandom so go easy if they're slightly OOC
> 
> TWs for this chapter:  
> \- referenced past child abuse and attempted murder (canon events but the slight twist of Ben surviving)

The ship would have looked intimidating to anyone else. And as Juno looked up at it, he was sure that it did to his friends. Rita, perched up on Mick’s shoulders, was staring up at it wide-eyed. Mick looked just as excited as she did.  
He glanced at his brother. Benzaiten’s face was almost unreadable, but there was a hint of excitement in his eyes, too. 

Maybe Juno was excited. Maybe he was terrified. He’d been dragged out to the middle of nowhere- Well, okay, he’d gone willingly- by a group of people he’d just barely met. He’d originally been supposed to bring Rita with him, just Rita.  
But Benten and Mick- They’d been too important. He wouldn’t leave Mars. Not without his family. His  _ whole  _ family. His brother, his two best friends. He wasn’t going to leave them behind. 

So they had come with him, and now they were all standing in front of what once had been a tour ship and would now be their new home as they joined into a gang of thieves and criminals. Or, formed said gang, Juno thought. They'd been told that everyone they'd be with was new- not to the gig of crime, but the ship itself- and they would help make up the tight-knit group. 

“Are we going to stand out here forever?” Buddy Aurinko. The captain of the ship ahead of them. She was a striking woman, fiery red hair that cascaded down her shoulders and covered up one eye. The radiation scars were just barely visible on her face. “You need to meet the rest of the crew.” She seemed to look pointedly at Juno when she said this, the slightest smile in her voice.

Jet Sikuliaq, as Juno had just recently learned his name was, was a member of the mentioned crew. He was standing just a little ways away from the group. He nodded towards Buddy and then said something into his comms.   
What could equate to the ship’s front door opened, and first out was a woman Juno recognized as Vespa Ilkay. Vespa was short, just slightly taller than Juno was, and wiry. Her shocking green hair was shaved on one side, falling over her face on the other, nearly obscuring one of her wild eyes.

Vespa settled next to Buddy, who spoke for her. “This is Vespa. She is the ship’s doctor and my right-hand.”  
Juno saw Rita wave out of the corner of his eye. He looked back and saw that both Buddy and Vespa smiled slightly at her. He’d only seen Vespa smile once before.

And then another shadow appeared in the entrance. No one- Especially Juno- was prepared for the last crew member to step out. His dark eyes immediately found Juno’s, and his lips curled into a smile, revealing his sharp canines. “Hello, Juno. Been a while.”

\---

Peter Nureyev. Last seen at a hotel in Hyperion. A hotel he’d spent the night with Juno in.  
Rita knew him as Rex Glass, Benten as Duke Rose. But it didn’t matter what they knew him by. Here he was, and both names had been long since thrown away- discarded like one would an empty bottle wine when it was finished.

And now he had a new name. Peter Ransom, he introduced himself as once they were all seated inside the ship.  _ Creativity isn’t your strong suit, is it?  _ Juno thought to himself, watching Nureyev from across the table.  
It wasn’t until he felt his brother kick his leg that he realized someone else was talking now- Buddy. She gave him a sharp look when he moved his attention. “Something on your mind, Juno?”

“Nothing. Sorry.” He sank into his chair. He could feel everyone’s eyes on him, and it took a lot for him not to snap. He did, though, kick Ben in retaliation.

Buddy nodded slightly in his direction, and gestured for everyone’s attention again. “As I was saying, the first heist is tomorrow. I didn’t anticipate having eight of you, so we’ll have three of you out doing the field work. Juno, Ransom- Here is your file on the case. I’m sure you still remember how to share, don’t you?”

She produced a file folder from-  _ Wherever,  _ and tossed it across the table.

Juno got a hold of it, opening it. “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me,” he mumbled under his breath as his eyes found their cover stories.

Before he could actually offer any other commentary, Buddy continued. “Everything you need is in there. And as for our third accomplice, we have the rare opportunity for what may be considered a body double.”   
  


The realization hit and Juno paled. “You are  _ not-” _

“I am.” She smiled. “If you would share that file with your dear brother as well, there are notes for what he is to do. Find a way to get in unnoticed, and in the event that Juno will need to be replaced, or simply distracted from, take his place.”

“No, you are not sending my  _ brother  _ on a dangerous heist-” Juno was close to no longer holding back from snapping. He stood up, his chair making a horrible sound as it scratched the floor.

Buddy almost laughed, but her visible eye was sympathetic. “We’re all a family here, Juno. A  _ crime  _ family. You signed up for this.” Juno scoffed, partly in indignation. “All three of you are going. If you have any concerns, feel free to express them. It won’t affect the plans in the slightest.”

Juno didn’t have anything to say back to that. He glanced over at Benten, who frowned. “You don’t need to protect me from anything,” he said, his voice quiet.  
Familiar words rang in his ear. Words he’d said right before Juno left for the academy and begged him to come. To get away from Oldtown, from Sarah, from their old life. Words he’d said a year before he’d almost died to familiar hands-  _ Sarah’s  _ hands.

He swallowed it down. “I’m sorry,” he said, quietly. The second time in ten minutes, a new record. He closed the folder he was holding and handed it over, glancing at Nureyev. “I’m going to go lie down, it’s been a long day.”

“We can discuss the plan later, then?” Nureyev piped up, looking right back at him. His voice held a smile. A cocky, annoying sort of smile. The kind of smile Juno knew and wished he hated.

“Yeah, whatever.” Juno shoved his chair in and walked to his room, shutting himself inside and falling onto the bed. He really did need to lie down.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * If the formatting is an issue, let me know, and I'll make the spaces shorter. I have it laid out the way it is for my own processing issues.
> 
> Chapter TWs:  
> \- References to past child abuse & canon events (somewhat for what Sarah did to Ben & what happened to Annie Wire)  
> \- References to alcohol abuse/alcoholism
> 
> (Don't worry about the length and the fact that nothing's really happening yet. The chapters will get longer; The first three will mostly just be everyone settling in and some plot points forming- they will be important later, chapter four will start the heist.)

Joining an intergalactic crime family had never been on Benzaiten’s bucket list. Not that he’d ever had one, but the idea would never have been on it even if he did. He made a mental note to make one, considering that this new job might come with even more near-death experiences, and some might not just be close. He tried not to think too hard about that. Now he was left with that crime family around the table, only two familiar faces in the room. Three if you counted Ransom.

Peter Ransom. Ben had never seen him before, but he wasn’t stupid. He’d seen his brother’s face- And they definitely knew each other. Not to mention the greeting when they’d first arrived.  
He connected the dots quickly enough. This was the same man Juno had mentioned before- He’d called him Duke Rose, but that wasn’t his real name, either. This was the man Juno had cried to him about- confessed that he’d spent the night with him in a Hyperion motel and then left him in the middle of the night. And he didn’t know why.  
But he knew he didn’t like this man.

He was jolted from his thoughts by Rita’s excited voice. “They got enough rooms for all of us!” She seemed to be mid-conversation, but Ben couldn’t tell who it was with. “Well, kinda, one was converted to a _second_ infirmary, that’s what Miss Vespa told me, and they got extra rooms just in case- I think most good ships do, that’s what they got in my films- So they got one less, Miss Buddy and Miss Vespa are sharin’ a room but I dunno who else got the deal.” She paused from her rambling to breathe.

“We all got our rooms when we got here,” Ben interrupted at the pause, confused. “I’m next to Juno, he’s across from you, you’re between the captain and Mick-”

“Situations change.” He hadn’t heard Buddy reenter. He really hoped that sneaking up on them wouldn't become a habit of hers. “Our resident lone wolf has requested that he stay solitary, and I will respect his wishes. We had to switch around one small rooming arrangement.”

He could only beg in his thoughts that he wasn’t doubled up with anyone, or if he was, that it was Juno. He was the only one who knew about the nightmares, who he wanted to know about them. He was the only one he trusted when they happened.   
When he looked back up, Buddy was looking at him.  _ Shit.  _ “Steel, you’re staying in the same room. Hope you don’t mind a roommate.” He definitely minded.

But he didn’t stay to find out who it was. He went into his room and shut the door, curling up on the bed and closing his eyes.   
Whoever it was, they would find out. He’d have to tell them  _ why.  _ He’d have to be vulnerable and open and he  _ hated  _ that. Only one person ever saw him vulnerable, and it was Juno. Juno was allowed to. They’d both seen each other at their worst and helped them through it. They’d both saved each other’s lives; Juno when he’d found Ben lying unconscious on their old bedroom floor, a hole in his side, and Ben when he’d found Juno lying unconscious in an alley, at least three empty bottles near him and blood on his shirt.

He couldn’t tell anyone. Not Jet Sikuliaq, the stranger he barely knew. Not Rita, his twin’s most trusted computer genius friend. Not even Mick.  
Especially not Mick. Ben hadn’t realized he had started hugging a pillow, but he suddenly held it tighter against his chest. He felt like he’d been lying, like he’d been pretending that he wasn’t broken, refusing to let anyone see the vulnerable side of him. And he was scared. Scared that he’d look weak, scared that he  _ was. _ Mick didn’t even know about his mom; They’d never told him. Juno didn’t talk about her unless he was making up some lie to get out of things. Ben just… Didn’t want people to know. Didn’t want Mick to know. He didn’t want to be broken. He had a chance to spend part of his life in a world where he  _ wasn’t _ weak, wasn’t broken. Where it was just the two of them and everything was okay and he could ignore everything outside.

And then the door opened, and he looked up with a sliver of hope. One last silent prayer that it would be Juno. When he saw who was in the doorway, his face fell. The hope was gone.  
“Hey, I thought you’d be happy that we’re rooming together.”

“No, I- I am.” Ben closed his eyes for a second. When he opened them, Mick was still standing in front of him. “Sorry, just- Long day.”

“I know.” He walked over and sat next to him. His hand went to the small of his back, and Ben felt himself relax. 

Ben exhaled. “I’m glad it’s you.” It wasn’t a _complete_ lie. In any other scenario, under any other circumstances, this was the dream. They could share a room without anyone finding out, it was perfect. But this wasn’t perfect. This would ruin the perfect fantasy.

“I’m glad it’s me, too.” Mick grinned; The easy, outgoing grin he always had, the kind of grin that could make anyone believe that things would be okay. At least for a little while.  
Ben pushed the panic down. He wanted to let the fantasy take over again, for a little while.

“Kind of lucky you got stuck in here, huh?” He was smiling now, too. The sun was still up- He didn’t have to worry right now. Right now he could go back to that secret world, where nothing was wrong and no one else existed.

Mick seesawed his hand. It was almost an unnoticeable gesture, more to himself. He always thought out loud- with his hands, at least. “Yeah, _real_ lucky.”

And Ben was no longer relaxed. “Mick.” He looked up. “What does that mean?”

“That we’re lucky to be rooming together? That’s what you said, right?” He fidgeted with the hair tie on his wrist, looking at the opposite wall as he tied back his hair. A nervous habit Ben had gotten used to.

“You basically used air quotes, what did you do?” Panic filled him. “You didn’t- You didn’t  _ tell them- _ ”

“Course I didn’t tell them.” Mick softened. “I just- I may have suggested, in passing, that if anyone had to double up-” He stopped talking. “I’m sorry,” he said, almost uncharacteristically quiet.

Ben shook his head. “No- No, don’t. Don’t apologize.” That was close,  _ so close,  _ and he didn’t want to admit how worried he was.   
He didn’t want Mick to apologize because he hadn’t done anything. It was barely a slip, it was manageable. Ben felt like his brother as he thought, shaking his head a little. Juno was the paranoid one, not him. He exhaled, this was another worry to push back. 

“Mick,” he said, looking back up at him. Even sitting down, it was a fair difference in height. Ben was never short, but Mick was the only person he’d ever known who could actually be described as a tree. So he had to lean up, shifting to sit on his legs, when he kissed him.

It had always been like this, since high school. Empty classrooms during lunch, the locker room after hours. Mick’s apartment if they could get away with it on weekends. And now it was a shared room on what could be described as a space-pirate ship.  
It was easier to keep secrets before. Juno was always out of the house if he could be, and he never went to parties, or stayed after school. They’d only been caught once, but Annie Wire could be trusted not to tell. She’d always been closer with Ben than the others. He’d cried for a week after she died.

Ben didn’t notice that he was fading into his own thoughts until the kiss broke and he was pulled back into the real world. He opened his eyes to find a pair of gentle ones looking back at him with slight concern. “Where’d you go?” Mick asked, his hand still on the side of Ben’s jaw, still holding him close enough. “You’re not here.”

“Sorry- I’m back.” Ben took a breath. “Just got lost in thought, I guess.” He felt himself be pulled into a comfortable, gentle hug, and let himself get lost again.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter TWs:  
> none! (the ending does have a reference to sarah steel and an implied reference to their rough childhood, though, be warned about that)
> 
> I promise this is the last exposition chapter- there's a little more in the next one but that's when the heist starts. We're just setting up some plot before we really get into it. :)  
> (This chapter is lower quality, sorry for that. Experiencing some issues with my mental health but didn't want to delay the update any more than I had to. I hope this is at least halfway decent.)
> 
> Oh! Also! Thanks for the couple comments I got, those really do mean a lot. I tend not to reply to comments, but I do read ones that I get and I'm so thankful for them, so thank you.

Juno didn’t know how long he’d been lying in bed. He wasn’t sure if he’d actually fallen asleep or if he’d just really been zoned out. He didn’t care.  And he hated it, but he was thinking about Nureyev again. He didn’t have a right to say that Peter had broken his heart. He wasn’t the one who left. Juno was.

He really had wanted to go, wanted to chase the end of the universe with Peter. But he couldn’t leave his past behind. He couldn’t leave Hyperion behind. So he left, in the middle of the night. He barely even heard the soft call of his name as the door closed behind him.  
And now Nureyev was back in his life, on the same ship he was, and tomorrow they would be pulling a heist together. 

“Am I interrupting something?” Juno tensed. He hadn’t heard the door open. He looked up at  _ Ransom.  _ “I thought it would do us well to go over the plan for tomorrow," Nureyev continued, not really seeming to care if he _was_ interrupting or not.

“We’ll wing it, let me sleep.” 

Peter’s smile was so  _ annoying.  _ “Now, Detective,  _ that  _ is a very good way to get caught,” he chided, a patronizing tone in his voice.

Juno wrapped himself up in the blanket, huffing. This was going to be a long day, and it was barely after lunch.

The meeting did not go well. Okay, it went smoothly. But not  _ well.  _ Not well as in, when Nureyev left, Juno almost asked him not to go. He wanted him to _stay._  
He hit the side of the wall, right next to his bed. God  _ damn  _ it. He didn’t like that Nureyev could still make him feel like this, like he wanted him to stay. Like he wanted to outrun the end of the world with him. 

He needed to talk to someone about it. Benten was the only person he wanted to talk to about it. So he pushed himself out of bed- With some difficulty, it really was a comfortable bed- and left his room.  
His brother’s room was right next to his, so it was easy to get to without having to try and remember where exactly it was. Of course he didn’t bother knocking, it was his brother.

“I need to talk to-” His voice faded out as he actually looked at the room. “Mick? What are you doing in here?” he asked, seeing his best friend on the floor, sitting against the end of the bed, reading a comic.

“They moved rooms around, we’re roommates.” Benten was sitting on the bed, his legs crossed. He was reading his own book, but put it down when Juno looked at him. “What do you want?”

Juno hesitated. He didn’t want to ask Mick to leave, but he didn’t want to tell  _ him,  _ too. “Can we talk in my room?”  He thought he saw a look of panic cross his brother’s face before he stood up, walking over and following back to Juno’s room.

Benten sat on the bed, looking up at him. “There a reason we couldn’t talk in there?” he asked.

“Don’t like talking about my love life in front of Mick,” Juno shrugged. He saw Benten’s shoulders relax, but figured it was just tension from the travel.  He sat down by his twin with a low groan. “I hate him.”   
  


“Who? Ransom?” Benten sat up behind him to start messing with his hair. He always did that when they talked, and Juno would always leave the conversation with braids or some new elaborate style. He used to think that half of his head being shaved would stop that, but it really didn’t. He didn’t really mind it, though. Especially not after he'd almost really lost it for good.

Juno sighed. “Yeah. No. I don’t  _ hate  _ him, I  _ can’t.  _ That’s the problem.” He stopped talking for a second, trying to think first. He didn’t do that much. “I thought I was over him.” Benten snickered, and he scowled. “Don’t laugh at me.”

“Sorry, just-  _ Really?  _ Anyone could tell you you weren’t over him, Juno.” 

He groaned, shoving Benten's arm. “I can’t even be mad at him, _he_ didn’t leave _me_.” Now he felt like an ass. Not like he didn't before, but complaining to Ben, about a guy he'd left in the first place. He was, admittedly, more mad at himself, but he wanted to blame Nureyev at least a little.

“Yeah, that was a pretty douchey move,” Benten said unhelpfully.

Juno tried very hard not to hit him again. Yeah, he knew his brother was right. Of course he was. But he didn’t have to point it out like that. “He doesn’t forgive me, Ben. Pretty much acts like we’ve never met. And tomorrow we have to go on that stupid mission together under the cover that we’re  _ married  _ and he’s just as unhappy about it as I am.”

Benten was silent for a minute. Then he looked sympathetic. “He probably thinks about you like you think about him. It’s hard to act like you’re in love when it’s real and unrequited.”

No. No, that wasn’t it. It was real for Juno. That was it. It had been a  _ year,  _ and he’d seen people move on in less. And the way it had ended- whatever it was- in the first place wasn’t the most hopeful ending. If Nureyev was still in love with him after that, he was an idiot. But he wasn’t an idiot. Juno was.  
“He’s not- He doesn’t. I know that much."

“Really?” Benten laughed. It was infuriating. “You’re dense. I was looking right at both of you-”

“And what do you know?” Juno snapped. He felt Benten tense, and his hand left his hair. “You don’t know what love looks like, so just- Drop it.”

Benten got up. Something about his demeanor had shifted, dimmed. “I’ll see you at dinner,” he said stiffly, turning and walking out of the room. The door shut behind him.

Juno watched the door. He hadn’t said something bad, had he? He thought about what he  _ did  _ say. He didn’t think there was anything that would upset Ben so much. Maybe he’d hit a nerve, saying he didn’t know. He’d never thought it was a sore spot, that Benten had never dated. But maybe it was. Then he thought for a moment, and  _ oh. Oh, no, that hadn't been what he'd meant.   
_ He suddenly felt bad, guilt tugging at his chest. It had just been a jab in a moment of anger, but he'd never bring up their mother like that, not _cruelly._ Ben had to know that, right? He had to know that that hadn't been what Juno meant.

He laid back on the bed, undoing the few braids Benten had finished. Then he closed his eye and tried to lose sight of the real world.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter TWs:  
> \- A few mentions of past child abuse/Sarah's whole deal (two direct mentions of the attempted murder)
> 
> Okay, so technically the heist starts /next chapter/ but this one kind of kicks it off. Enjoy! Leave a comment if you can, I love those.

_ You don’t know what love looks like.  _ The words rang in his ears, the only sound he heard when he sat, alone, in the sitting room of the ship.

He knew what Juno meant. Even if he’d really been mad, he never would have brought up their mother like that. He never would have used that against him. No, that’s not what he meant. He’d meant it like, as far as he knew, Ben had never been in love. That he couldn’t understand because he’d never felt like that before. And he couldn’t tell him that he had. That he  _ was. _

So why did it  _ hurt _ so much?

Maybe it was because sometimes he was scared that he wasn’t. That if no one else could see it, maybe it wasn’t real. He’d never say it out loud, to anyone, but he was terrified that he was faking it. That he  _ didn’t  _ know what love looked like. He'd never been good with feelings, and trusting his own heart wasn't a strong suit, either.

He tried to bury himself in the seat he was in, pulling a random blanket over himself. Being sad sucked and he hated it. He wasn’t  _ supposed  _ to be sad. Juno was the sad one. Ben had always been the uplifting twin, the guy that put everyone in a good mood just by being around. He didn’t like not being able to do that.

“Benten? Are you in here?” Juno’s voice was thick with worry and regret. “Look, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to say that.”   
He walked in and sat down by him. 

“I know.” Ben sat up, like it would make him look less pathetic. “I’m sorry I freaked out.” And he was. Because now he might have to explain why he did.

Juno shifted uncomfortably. “You know I didn’t- I didn’t mean it like that. Like I was talking about Ma. I wasn’t.”

“I know,” he said quietly. “Can you drop it? It’s almost dinner, I want to have a good time.” 

“Yeah- Sorry.” Juno still sounded concerned. And  _ god _ , Ben hated it. He watched him get up and go, and wanted to scream.

It wasn’t Juno’s fault. But Ben hated being treated like he was fragile. Like he was a baby compared to his two-minute-older brother. Ever since he’d found him in their room, Juno had changed. He’d kept his brother closer, inviting him everywhere that wasn’t dangerous. He even started hanging around Mick, his old high school best friend, because he needed someone to be with Ben when he couldn’t. 

Ben knew that he was only being protective because he was scared. And it’s not like he blamed him. Finding your twin brother bleeding out on your bedroom floor with a hole in his side could really do something to your mental state. It really did something to Ben’s, too, he was just better at hiding it.

Dinner went about as smoothly as he’d expected. At least no food was thrown during the course of it. He mostly stayed silent, sitting at the end of the table next to Mick and paying attention to his food.

It was, admittedly, very good food.

“Benten?” He was snapped back to attention by his brother’s voice. Juno kicked his ankle under the table. “Buddy got some disguises for tomorrow. Do you want to go look at them?”

Might as well, he figured. It would get him out of dinner. “Yeah, sure.” He got up to follow Juno out- he saw Ransom follow behind them.

  
  


Benzaiten would wear a lot of things. A huge gold ball gown-  _ sparkles included-  _ was not one of those things. He hated gold, and the sparkles just looked… so tacky. 

And the  _ matching jeweled eyepatch.  _ Were they trying to get caught with all the clown vibes this look gave off?

He wondered if Juno was putting up with this. Apparently, from the bits of conversation he heard in the next room right then, he wasn’t.

For the first time since getting on the ship, he envied Ransom. A nice, stylish tux. At least he got to have some  _ class.  _

Bad enough that Ben was only on the mission to be used as a stunt double for his brother. Now he had to dress in the most hideous thing he’d ever seen. He sighed. He couldn’t complain; This job was the greatest thing to happen to him in years, it had given him a reason to leave Shittown, Mars.

He took one last look at the gown before he went back to say goodnight to his brother and captain. “I’m gonna head to bed early, big day tomorrow.”

“Sleep well, you’ll want to be well rested.” At least Buddy was polite. Ben imagined that Juno might have idolized her if not for that.

He waved- more of just throwing a peace sign- to his brother before slipping back into the corridor.

He was out like a light almost the second he hit the mattress. It was a relief.

* * *

Ben slipped the tight jacket on, eyeing his brother. Juno was tying the eyepatch at the back of his head, fixing his hair after he did. “You ready?”

“Not really,” Juno said, shrugging slightly. He tugged uncomfortably at one of his sleeves. “This gown itches and last time I went undercover I almost cost me and Ransom both our lives.”

“You’ll be fine. I’ll be there this time, remember?” Ben tied up his laces and stood up.

Juno snorted. “Right. Forgot, I have my inexperienced baby brother tagging alone this time.”

The response was a pen being thrown at him. “First of all, ten minutes does not make me your baby brother. Second, I can take care of myself.”

He didn’t like it when Juno implied he couldn’t, and he didn’t exactly keep that a secret. It made him feel helpless, which was a feeling he hated. A feeling that reminded him of how he’d felt all those years ago, lying on the floor of his bedroom as he bled out onto the carpet.

A new voice shook the memory away. “Juno?”  _ Of course it was Ransom.  _ “Ah, I see you’re both all ready.”

Ben didn’t turn around, but he could hear the smile. God, his brother was right, that was an  _ annoying  _ smile.

“I’m going to go get ready in my own room,” Ben decided. Best to leave the other two alone, he thought. Besides, he wasn’t so privileged as to take his own love interest on their mission, and there was a goodbye in order.

He heard Juno grumble as he left, something about getting him back for this. 

He paid no mind to it, walking back to his own room. He knocked on the wall after shutting the door. “Hey.”

Mick looked up from the comic he was reading- He’d had the goal of finishing the series by the last heist. His grin, which never dropped, brightened. “Hey- You look good.”

Ben laughed, relaxing. “Thanks. Hopefully no one else thinks so- It is supposed to get me in there unnoticed.”

He went over and sat down on the bed, leaning comfortably on his boyfriend’s arm. “We’re leaving soon, I came to say goodbye.”

“Aw, already?” Mick held his hand.

“Yeah, already. You have to let go of my hand.” He smiled at him. “I can’t leave when you’re holding it like that.”

“Mhm.” Mick hummed, only tightening his grip. “No, you can’t.”

Ben softened a little. “It’ll only be a few hours.” He bit the inside of his cheek, seeing the other’s expression. “I’ll be safe,” he promised.

It was silent for a minute. Ben heard his twin from the other room, calling for him. “I have to go, I’m sorry.”

He was frowning a little as he stood up and walked to the door, then briefly realized that he did  _ not  _ want to do that and went back over to the bed. He smiled when Mick kissed him, holding his jaw, and then pulled back.

He barely heard the soft “I love you” as the door closed.

  
  


“You remember what you’re going to do?” Juno asked, a hint of worry in his voice.

Ben exhaled. “Yeah- Yeah, I remember. It’s not me I’m worried about.” Juno was about to respond, but he cut him off. “You’re someone else the second you walk in. Don’t let your feelings make you forget that, okay?”

Juno laughed, but it sounded annoyed. “You’re the P.I. now, huh? I can do this.”

“I know.” And he did. But he also knew that Juno always let his feelings control him. And this time that could cost them a lot more than just a client’s dollars.

He didn’t have time to voice the rest of his fears when the hatch opened, and the trio could see their target in front of them.

Ben glanced at his brother, giving a reassuring smile, and split away from them, set on his own part of the mission. Juno could do this, he repeated silently to himself. He didn’t have to worry about him.


End file.
